SAN ANTONIO – Thanks to smoke detectors and better building codes, the number of house fires in the US has dropped by half since 1980. The bad news is that the fires that do happen are much deadlier.
House fires today burn faster and hotter, and they’re deadlier than ever. But why? One main reason is time.
“Forty years ago, you would have had about 17 minutes to get out of a house on fire. But today you have just three minutes,” said Consumer Reports’ John Galeotafiore.
So what’s changed? In part, floor plans are more open now. With fewer walls and doors, fires travel faster and more freely.
Another culprit is today’s furniture.
“A lot of homes today have furnishings made with synthetic materials like plastic or particleboard, which burn much quicker than, say, solid wood,” Galeotafiore said.
Here are some ways to protect your home and family:
Have at least one smoke detector and one class “ABC” fire extinguisher per floor of your home, and check them monthly.
Consumer Reports recommends the dual-sensor alarms from First Alert and Kidde. Both got perfect scores for detecting both flaming and smoldering fires.
Learn how to use a fire extinguisher before you need it. Pull the pin, aim the nozzle at the bottom of the fire, squeeze the trigger and pass the nozzle back and forth.
Don’t leave lithium-ion batteries, like the ones for your power tools, charging overnight, and be sure to only use the charger that came with it.
If you have an outlet that doesn’t grip the plug, it’s time to change it. Replace your worn-out outlets with an arc-fault circuit interrupter, also known as an AFCI outlet.
And have an escape plan in place and rehearse it with everyone in your household.
Fire prevention experts also recommend keeping your bedroom door closed at night. That can help keep fires from spreading.